The Truth Will Set You Free
by Zoey Skywalker 11
Summary: Obi-Wan is withholding important information from his Master. But why?
1. Chapter 1

The Truth Will Set You Free

The Truth Will Set You Free

Title- The Truth Will Set You Free

Author-Zoey Skywalker 11

Summary-Obi-Wan is withholding important information from his Master. But why?

Rating-PG

Time Frame-Pre-TPM-Obi-Wan is 8.

Spoilers-I don't think so.

Reviews-Sure. But please be nice. I am still learning.

Disclaimer-The world of Star Wars belongs to the God known as George Lucas. I only live in the world, I don't own it.

Author's Note #1-This story takes place when Obi-Wan is 8. As much as I adore the JA books it does not follow them. I like him younger. He is just sooo cute!

A/N #2-I self-betaed the story, and I did my best, so try not to be too harsh about that.

The Truth Will Set You Free

**Chapter 1**

Obi-Wan Kenobi could not fall asleep. He was too excited. Tomorrow he was going on a field trip with his class. They were all going to a Scientific Museum on the nearby planet of Puthgfy. And even better there were going to stay on the planet for two and half days. They were even going to sleep INSIDE the museum. For many of the students, it would be only there first or second trip outside of the Jedi Temple. Obi-Wan, being a Padawan, was not one of these students, having even been off-planet before. Obi-Wan was one of the youngest Padawans ever taken and because of that he got to do lots of things that the other students in his classes could not do. Like live in his own apartment with his Master, the great and powerful Jedi Qui-Gon Jinn. But luckily for Obi-Wan, he got to live in the best of both world, having a Master and still going to classes with his friends. And field trips.

The Jedi Padawan tried once again to get comfortable and go to sleep. But his attempts were in vain. Once again his thoughts circled around to all the fun things that he was going to do with Garen, Reeft and Bant tomorrow. His bedroom door sliding open interrupted those thoughts. Again. His Master had been trying to get him to go to sleep for over an hour now. He had stilled his movements with gentle touches, read him two stories and had given him three Force suggestions. None of it had done any good. Obi-Wan was still has hyper as he had been at the start of all this. The Padawan felt the bed dip as his Master sat next to him.

"Obi-Wan. You need to go to sleep, little one."

"But I can't."

"Hmmm. Something about a field trip, perhaps."

"Yes, Master. Why can't it be morning now?"

"Because not all of the Padawans have gone to sleep."

"But Master, I'm not tired," Obi-Wan said his best whining voice.

"While I beg to differ, let me ask you a question. What do you think would get you to the field trip faster? Laying here awake all night, counting down the minutes, or going to sleep and waking up when it is time to go?"

"Going to sleep."

"Yes. Now let me help you go to sleep and when you wake up, it will be time to go. Now get comfortable and close your eyes. That's right." Qui-Gon kept talking in soothing tones, rubbing his Padawan's back in an effort to calm him down enough to sleep. "Now sleep." Obi-Wan felt the power of the Force-suggestion enter his mind and soon he was sound asleep.

Sure enough, when the young Obi-Wan Kenobi woke up the next morning it was almost time to go. Qui-Gon was at the door telling him that he had less than an hour to get ready and that he still needed to take a shower and eat. But when Obi-Wan dragged him out of bed, he realized that he didn't feel so great. He still really tired and he was kind of achy. The young Padawan shrugged it off and went to take a shower, knowing that that would wake him up and take the aches away. So he got some clean clothes and went into the fresher, hearing Qui-Gon making him breakfast in the kitchen.

After his shower, Obi-Wan was starting to worry. He still felt weak and tired and his whole body hurt. He had also started coughing a very dry cough that made his chest hurt. The Padawan thought that he might be getting sick, but he could not get sick. Not today! Garen, Bant, Reeft and him were all going to the coolest museum in the galaxy. But his Master would never let him go if he thought he was sick. He would make Obi-Wan stay home, which was something that the Padawan could not let happen. So only seeing one option, Obi-Wan decided to hide the whole thing from his Master. He knew that he should never hide something like this from Qui-Gon, but it was the only way that he would be allowed to go. It was probably just a cold anyway and it would go away on its own.

Putting on a very strong front, Obi-Wan went to eat breakfast. He was not particularly hungry, but if he didn't eat his Master would get suspicious. Sitting at the kitchen table, Obi-Wan poured himself some Galaxy O's from the cereal box. Thankfully, he always preferred them dry, so it would not look weird when he did not ask for the milk. That was one thing he would not be able to stomach right now. Qui-Gon walked over to the table, setting a glass of juma juice in front of his Padawan. Obi-Wan thanked him and returned his attention to his cereal, hoping that his Master would just ignore him. He didn't.

"Are sure all you want is cereal, Padawan? I made panack eggs."

"No, thank you Master. I just want to eat and go."

"Alright; if you are sure. Did you pack?"

"Yes, Master. My bag is in my room."

"Ok. Finish your breakfast, while I make sure you packed everything."

Obi-Wan heaved a sigh of relief when his Master went into his bedroom. The Padawan wondered if he suspected anything. Not feeling hungry, Obi-Wan poured his uneaten cereal back in the box, hoping that his Master would not wonder how he ate his food so fast. He need not have worried. A few minutes later, Qui-Gon came back in the room, his Padawan's bag in hand. "Ready, Padawan. It is time to go."

The Padawan just nodded, took his bag from his Master and together they left the apartment.

Qui-Gon was a little worried about his Padawan. Obi-Wan had been very quiet today, a real contrast to the hyperactive child he had been last night. Qui-Gon wondered if it was nerves. This was the first time Obi-Wan was going to away from his Master since they became a team. Well, expect for that two-day period when Obi-Wan was captured on Larbec, but that was another story. Sure, the Padawan was going to be safe with the Jedi Knights who were accompanied the children, but Qui-Gon wondered if that was going to be enough for the child.

Finally, they arrived at the landing pad where the ship was set to take the children to Puthgfy. Before, Obi-Wan could join his friends, Qui-Gon pulled him aside to make that he was alright with all of this. "Obi-Wan. Are you alright?"

"Yes, Master. Can I go now?"

"Listen. I know that this is going to be our first time on different planets since we became a team. That can be scary. Are you sure you are OK with this?"

"Yes, Master."

"Ok. Listen. You have my comlink number if you need anything, you can just call me. Anytime, alright." Obi-Wan nodded. "Very well, little one," Qui-Gon said as he pulled his Padawan in to his arms. "I will see you in three days. Have fun and listen to your instructors."

"I will, Master," said Obi-Wan breaking the embrace

"Good. Well, go join you friends. Have fun and may the Force be with you."

"And with you, Master" And with one last, quick hug, Obi-Wan ran off to find his friends.

Qui-Gon stayed on the landing pad, watching the ship until it was well out of sight. A part of him said that something was still wrong with his Padawan. But that could not be. After all, if something were wrong, he would have told his Master. Qui-Gon had to face facts. His Padawan was fine. He had been looking forward to this trip for weeks and while he was happy, his Master was not. It was very hard to let his Obi-wan go. The child was going to be away from three days. That was three days without having to teach the boy anyway, having to push him to sleep and eat his vegetables, having to keep the boy's short attention span amused, having to constantly tell the boy to clean up his room and stop leaving his things scattered all over the common room floor. The next three days were going to be hell.

I know that this is a little shorter than what I usually write, but there is much more to come. I promise. The next chapter will

up in a week or two. Thanks for reading!!


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Here it is: the next chapter of my latest fanfic!

But before we get to that, I would like to send a big Thank You to my reviewers!!

**Geri K**-Yes. Where would we be without Obi-angst? Thank you for your continued support!

**KCS**-I am very glad that you enjoyed my story so far. I hope that you also enjoy this chapter as Obi-Wan starts to find the reasons we don't lie…Thanks for reading!

**black-n-white-stockings-**Yes; the last line is my favorite too. That was one of those lines that just hit like a ton of bricks. I am glad that you like my story and thanks for reading.

**Neptune's Violin**-Yes, where we would be without the children who can make us young and old at the same time? Thanks for your support!

And on with the story!!

**Chapter 2**

Obi-Wan was miserable. He had been so looking forward to this trip and now all he wanted to do was go home, be with Qui-Gon, crawl in his own bed and die. Instead, he was on Puthgfy at some museum that he didn't even care about anymore. The Padawan wanted to have fun with his friends, but at the same time, he just didn't feel like it.

The trip here had been torture. His peers were all cramped into this tiny ship and they were screaming throughout the ship with the Knights trying to keep them somewhat calm. All of the noise and commotion, just aggravated Obi-Wan's headache, so he just went into a corner of the ship to try and escape it all. Unfortunately, that was easier said than done. It took less than five minutes for Garen, Bant and Reeft to find him. It seemed obvious to them that something was wrong with their friend and they wanted to make him feel better. At the time, Obi-Wan had just explained that he had a little headache that went along with a cold or something. Then he swore them to secrecy, making them promise not to tell any of the teachers. At the time, the Padawan just believed that it was a cold with a bad headache. He still did not want to miss the museum. They promised and hung out with him until they arrived at the museum, four hours later.

Things did not really improve once they arrived at the museum. The students all put their bags in the room that they would be staying in for the next two nights. It was a huge room, with different drawings all over the walls and glow-in-the dark stickers on the ceiling. They would only be spending the evenings in the room, because over the course of two days the students would get a tour of every area of museum. Today the students were going to be seeing the part of the museum that talked about the different species in the galaxy. It was one of the larger sections, which was why they needed five hours to go through it all. Obi-Wan was not really interested in seeing this particular exhibit, not that he really had a choice. He wanted to see the technology exhibit, but that was not going to happen until tomorrow.

The Jedi all went to eat lunch at the cafeteria before they went to the exhibit. Obi-Wan still was not hungry, but he had feeling that that had something to do with the stomach pains that he was starting to get. For the second time that day, he ate a little food to make it look like he was fine and then he gave his food to Reeft. For the first time ever, Reeft questioned his friend giving him food. Reeft could never get enough to eat and Obi-Wan always gave him some of his food. But the student had a slight problem with Obi-Wan giving him ALL his food. The Padawan just pushed the plate towards him and rested his head on the table. Little did he know that his friends were planning to watch him like a hawk for the rest of the trip. It was clear that their friend was sick. He did seem to be okay, just tired and miserable like most sick people are. But they vowed that if he got any worse, they would break their promise and tell the teachers. They cared about him too much to do any less.

After lunch, the students went to the Species exhibit. Obi-Wan found the artifacts and hands-on activities to be fun, but he just didn't care. He was feeling worse by the minute. The Padawan now had accepted that he was sick and it was probably worse than a cold. And that thought made the young Jedi very nervous. He was starting to get worried about what would happen when Qui-Gon found out. The Padawan had withheld information about his health to his Master. In the Jedi order, that was considered a lie, which was forbidden. What would Qui-Gon do when he found out that his Padawan had withheld the truth, so that he could go on some stupid field trip? While he did not believe that his Master would send him away, he was still scared about the outcome of this.

So he kept his mouth shut. While he still felt sick, it was not unbearable. He was still able to look engaged when they were being shown stuff and he could still participate in the activities that were set up throughout the exhibit. Well, not the ones that moved, but skipping a few did not draw attention. Thankfully, none of the Knights seemed to have noticed and he was not going to tell them. Thankfully, the rule was that you could not withhold the truth from one's Master. One's teachers did not count. It was a loophole and a gray area at that, but Obi-Wan would take what he could get. That rebellious side of Qui-Gon was rubbing off on his impressionable young ward more than either of them realized.

The afternoon passed rather slowly for the suffering Padawan, but he was not too miserable. He was having some fun with his friends and he liked seeing all of the artifacts. His whole body kept screaming at him to take a nap, but he was doing fun stuff so he tried not to dwell on it too much.

After the students had seen the entire Species wing, some parts twice, the Jedi went to eat dinner. Once again Obi-Wan really did not eat anything. He just played around with his food, ate a few bites and then gave the rest to Reeft. The three best friends of Obi-Wan were starting to get worried again. Their friend had seemed alright during the day, but now he seemed worse than at lunch. It seemed like he was going to fall asleep on the table and his eyes had a weird glassy look to them. After dinner, the class was supposed to watch a scientific movie and then go to bed. It was going to be a very relaxing night, so the three each silently decided to wait and see how Obi-Wan was in the morning before making a move. This could just be a temporary bug that would wash itself out his system with sleep. They all knew that Obi-Wan really, really wanted to see the technology exhibit tomorrow and they did not want to ruin that unless they had to.

Soon after dinner, the students pilled into the large viewing theatre where they would watch their educational movie. It was going to be about the Exploration of the Yujderanti Plains, which had been going on for the last hundred years or so. The work that they were doing was fascinating as they were trying to discover more about their past which had been hidden under miles of volcanic ash. The whole process was very interesting, particularly the state in which things were found. Most of the artifacts were perfectly preserved, shocking considering that they had been under miles of dirt for over a millennium.

About halfway through the movie, Obi-Wan started to feel really, really sick. His head throbbed, his whole body ached, he couldn't breathe right and he was completely exhausted. Without even paying attention to his actions, Obi-Wan leaned over to his right and put his tired head on Garen's shoulder. He felt Garen look down at him, probably in surprise, before returning his attention to the screen, letting his best friend use him as a pillow.

Obi-Wan had no idea how long he slept, but it wasn't enough, waking up as the movie finished. Thankful in knowing that the day was over and it was time for bed, Obi-Wan got himself out of the chair and in line with his classmates. Throwing a thankful smile to Garen, the four friends walked out of the theatre.

Unfortunately for the young Obi-Wan, sleep did not come so easily a second time. Lying on his sleeping mat, the Padawan was in too much pain to fall asleep. His stomach was killing him, his head hurt, he was burning up and freezing at the same time and he could not get comfortable because of how much his body ached. There was a part of him that knew that this was all his fault. If he had just told his Master that he was not feeling well, then he would be at home now, safe and sound in his own bed, with Qui-Gon watching over him. Taking care of him. But instead he was on another planet, miserable and alone on a hard floor without his Master. I will never hide anything like this ever again. It's not worth it, Obi-Wan thought as he rolled over for the hundredth time since he lay down.

"Obi-Wan. Are you OK?" Bant's voice instantly stilled his movements. What was he going to tell her? That he just wanted to roll over and die? Maybe it was time to give up this act. He was getting worse and he did want to go home. But what would Qui-Gon say? Would he still love and care for him? Obi-Wan was not sure he could handle and disappointment from his Master right now. So instead of making a decision, the young Padawan stayed quiet.

Bant, on the other hand, did not. Obi-Wan watched as she woke up both Garen and Reeft somehow managing to not wake up any of the Knights or other students. Obi-Wan had purposely chosen a spot in one of the far corners, opposite where the Knights were sleeping. There were also not too many students near him. Of course, his best friends refused to leave his side, but that was to be expected. The four of them were always together at the Temple and that was not going to change now; especially when one of them was sick and getting sicker. Within minutes, Obi-Wan was literally surrounded by his friends. Before he could raise a protest, Bant checked his forehead while Garen and Reeft tried to get Obi-Wan to talk to them.

"Reeft. Obi-Wan is burning up. Go get Knight Nujay," Bant said.

"No. Please don't," was the soft-spoken, pain-filled response that Bant got. Obi-Wan was still unsure about telling people, still nervous at what his Master would say about this. Reeft froze not wanting to upset either of his friends, never one to cause conflict. Bant just looked between her friends, believing that this was over her head. She didn't want to hurt Obi-Wan, but he needed help.

Thankfully, the conflict quickly died as Garen spoke up for the first time that night, asking the question on all of their minds. "Obi-Wan. Why don't you want us to tell the Knights? You are obviously sick and in pain. Why do you want to keep up this act when the Knights can get somebody to help you?"

"Qui-Gon." That soft-spoken reply shocked all three of the students. They knew how much the Master cared for their friend. How could he be preventing Obi-Wan from getting the care that he needed?

Garen recovered from the shock first, ready to get his friend to agree to help by any means necessary. "What do you mean, Obi-Wan? You know that your Master loves you."

"But I lied."

"You need to give us more than that," Garen stated.

"This morning I woke up feeling a little sick, but I didn't tell Qui-Gon because he would have made me stay home. And now he will be mad at me and I don't want him to be mad at me. I'd rather be sick in silence than have him mad at me."

"Obi-Wan. I don't think that Qui-Gon is capable of being mad at you. Especially when you are in such pain. He knows how much you wanted to come here and I think that he will understand. Besides, I think that you want him here as much as he would want to be here. That is if you would stop being so stubborn. Come on, pal. Let us get you some help."

Garen held his breath as he waited for his friend's response. He had been really scared about his friend since he had fallen asleep on his shoulder during the movie. The student had never seen anyone so sick. The weak, but affirmative answer that Obi-Wan gave was music to Garen's ears. Immediately, Reeft went off to get the Knight, finally having a general consensus from the group.

"Garen."

"Yeah, Obi-Wan."

"When did you get to be so wise? I am supposed to be the Padawan here."

"Yeah, but I am older. Besides, you ARE wiser. Your brain has just been turned to mush by this flu-thing."

The conversation was interrupted as Knight Nujay and Reeft came up to Obi-Wan's side. Bant moved to stand next to Garen and Reeft as the Twi'lek Knight swiftly checked over the young Padawan.

"How are you feeling, Padawan Kenobi?"

"Sick."

"Do you want to go home or tough it out for the next two days?"

"I wanna go home," Obi-Wan said in his most pleading, desperate voice.

"Good. I think that that would be best, too. How about I call your Master and we will see what we can do about getting you home by noonmeal? Ok?" Obi-Wan nodded. "Good. Now while I am working everything out, why don't you try to go to sleep? That goes for the three of you, too," motioning to Garen, Reeft and Bant who had been watching the whole exchange. The three silently moved back to their sleep mats, all still worried about their friend. Nujay turned his attention back to the young Padawan, who was struggling with the discomfort the illness was causing and the sleep that was eluding him. The Knight reached out to the Force and sent a sleep suggestion toward the young Jedi. The effect was not very powerful, since the two were not bonded, but it was enough, finally putting Kenobi into a much-needed rest. Silently Nujay stood and walked away from the sleeping Padawans. After waking his peers up long enough to inform them of the current situation, he walked outside into the hall and called the Temple, ready to break the news to Qui-Gon Jinn.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Ok, Here is the next chapter. There will be one more chapter, which should be up in the next few weeks.

Thank you so much to all of my reviewers for he last chapter. You are all wonderful and thank you for your encouragement.

**Geri K**-I think that Obi-Wan will learn that in the next chapter. Thanks for reviewing.

**black-n-white-stockings-**Yes, where would we be without Obi-angst??

**KCS**-Yes. Obi-Wan has good friends and I hope that this chapter was quick enough

**Neptune's Violin**-Well, if you look below, you will find out…

**Padawan A. Kenobi**-Yeah, but it is in Obi-Wan's nature to worry about things like that. And I hope that this was soon enough!

And on with the story!!

**Chapter 3**

Meanwhile, Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn was sound asleep in his room at the Jedi Temple. It had been a very long day for the Jedi. He was shocked at how much one day without his Padawan had hurt him. The Jedi had done everything to keep himself busy, but focus seemed to be slipping. He had almost lost a lightsaber duel to Padawan and, while he had managed to win, he had not fought so badly in years. Meditation sessions were pointless and he could not seem to get engaged in anything his friends were saying. His thoughts were constantly drifting back to his Padawan and how much he missed him. He knew that he was being irrational, but he could not help it. Something in the back of his mind told him something was wrong. The logical part of him said that nothing was wrong; he was just being overly protective, something that he was going to have to get over. But he couldn't. This war between the two parts of his mind took up all of his attention, causing performances in all other areas to suffer. He could not contact the boy either, the distance between them too great for their young training bond. And he did not feel right calling the Knights in charge of the students either. How would that work: the great and powerful Jedi Master calling to ensure the well-being of his Padawan, who has been gone less than a day? He would have done it if he thought that something was wrong, but the majority of his brain told him that he was worrying for nothing. His Padawan was probably having the time of his life. So telling himself that everything was fine and hoping that the first day of this would be the hardest, the Jedi fell into a fitful sleep.

The Jedi Master was awoken by a beep on his nightstand. It was the alert that someone was calling the apartment comm unit, located in the common room. Looking at the chrono, Qui-Gon noticed that it was fairly late, just past midnight. Suddenly very worried that something WAS wrong, Qui-Gon threw on a robe, very quickly walked to the comm unit and activated it. His heart dropped when he saw who was calling. He knew that Knight Nujay was one of the leaders of Obi-Wan's trip. "What's wrong with my Padawan," Qui-Gon blurted out in a near-panic, not even giving Nujay the chance to greet the Master.

"Master Jinn. Your Padawan has come down with a rather nasty illness. I don't believe that it is life-threatening, but he is in a great deal of discomfort and wants to come home, which I fully support. He will probably need to see a Healer. You are the boy's Master, so you need to decide. How would you like us to proceed in this matter, Master Jinn?"

"Just monitor Obi-Wan and make sure he does not get any worse. I will be on a transport in the next ten minutes and I will bring a Healer with me. We should be on-planet in less than five hours. Have someone at the door to the museum to meet us. I will take Obi-Wan home and get him the care that he needs."

"Very well, Master Jinn, but are you sure this is what you want to do? We can have the boy to the Temple in about five-and-a-half to six hours…"

"No." I will lose my mind if I just sit here for six hours, not doing anything to help, thought Qui-Gon. "I will come and get him. I will call back when I am on-planet. Jinn out." And with that the Jedi Master cut the connection. Taking out his comlink, he immediately called the launch bay to get a starship to take him and the Healer to Puthgfy, requesting one with a MedBay. While doing that, Qui-Gon went back to his room and very quickly changed in his normal attire. Both of those things done, he called the Healer's Wing, requesting the Healer on-call. Master Healers took turns being on-call, meaning that they were ready to response to an off-planet medical emergency, like this. Tonight that Healer was Milo Feraan. He was the youngest Master Healer, but was said to have a great talent in his field. Quickly explaining the situation to Milo, Qui-Gon requested that he meet him at the landing pad. Feraan, of course, agreed and arrived just as Qui-Gon came out of the turbolift. However, someone had beaten them both.

Mace Windu stood on the pad, between the ship and the two other Jedi. "Where are you going this time, Jinn?" There was faint twinge of amusement in Windu's exasperated voice and Qui-Gon was anything but amused. Ignoring the Council Member, Qui-Gon grabbed the Healer's arm and walked past Windu to get to the ship. However, Mace was not deterred.

"Come on, Jinn. I get a call from the landing pad at 00:30 in the morning and I am told that you have all but demanded a fast ship with a MedBay. Come on, Jinn. We are friends here. Where are you going?"

Never stopping his brisk walk, Qui-Gon answered him in a monotone that gave away how close he was to completely breaking down. "Obi-Wan is very sick. I have to go bring him home."

"Oh. I am sorry, Jinn. The Council was not told. I will make sure all of the paperwork for the ship is done. I will also tell the rest of the Council to take you both off active duty until the boy is better, since I know that you will not leave him. Go now. And may the Force by with you."

Stopping long enough only to thank his friend, Qui-Gon took Milo and the two of them went to the ship, ready to get Obi-Wan.

Once the ship was in hyperspace, Milo had the chance to ask some of the questions that he wanted to ask, but could not earlier due to the other Jedi's fast-fading control. He knew that true control would not come until his Padawan was well again, but the Healer needed information. He had to know what kind of situation he was walking into, what supplies he would need. "Master Jinn. What do you know of your Padawan's condition?"

Qui-Gon just gave him a blank stare. "What do you mean?"

"What did the other Jedi tell you about Padawan Kenobi's condition? What are his symptoms?"

"I…I don't know. All Nujay told me was that he was sick, in a good deal of pain and would probably need a Healer. That was all I needed to hear."

Milo was not particularly shocked by this answer. He had seen it in other Masters. Their Padawans would get hurt or sick and all they cared about was getting the better, not caring about the route to get there. Milo would just have to prepare for anything.

Pulling out his datapad, he started to check the medical files of Kenobi that had been uploaded to his pad. The Padawan seemed to be in good health. No major problems up to this point; just injuries, a few of which were severe but none that would cause problems down the road. He had a few drug allergies. One of these, Ouyhgtian, seemed to cause a very serious reaction in the boy. The last time he had a drug in that medicinal family he almost died. In fact if he had not been surrounded by the Temple Healers he probably would have died. The only other thing of notice was that Kenobi was small for his age. According to his records he had just turned eight, but was more than four inches shorter than the standard seven-year old. His weight was proportional to his height, but he would have to be careful with dosing if and when he gave the boy medicine.

Looking up at the Jedi Master, Milo got a good idea of how worried the man was. He looked like he hadn't slept in weeks and his shoulders were filled with tension. "Master Jinn. Why don't you go in the hold and rest for a bit? We won't be there for at least four hours."

"How can I rest when my Padawan is so sick?"

"You can rest because the Master Healer orders you do so. Look, Obi-Wan is going to need you when we get there, but you look like you could collapse from exhaustion any moment. Just lie down. Get a little energy and then you will be able to help your Padawan when we get there. I will wake you up when we land. Now go." Truthfully, the Healer did not really expect the Master to listen to him, but he felt as a Healer he had to try. He was truly shocked when Master Jinn nodded and went in the hold to, hopefully, get some rest for the sake of the sick child in his care.

Qui-Gon did take the advice of Milo. He had no intention of being in a weakened state when they landed. He knew that his Padawan would need him and he would be strong for him. Doing his best to put his thoughts of Obi-Wan aside, Qui-Gon fell into a very restless sleep.

He was awoken a few hours later by Milo's voice coming from the cockpit. "Qui-Gon. We are in the atmosphere." The Master immediately got up and walked into cockpit, smoothing the wrinkles out of his clothes as he went.

"Sleep well?"

"Not really, but thank you Milo."

"Not at all. You look better."

"Thanks. Where are we?"

"Entering the atmosphere now. We should be at museum within the next fifteen minutes or so."

"Did you call Knight Nujay?"

"No. Why do we need to call him?"

"The museum is locked. He needs to inform museum security and let us in," Qui-Gon stated as he activated the comm unit. Quickly informing Nujay that they had arrived, Qui-Gon steeled himself for what was to come. He was almost frantic with worry for his student, truly to an irrational point. He knew that he needed to get over this and be strong for his student. The Master had a feeling that this would get easier once he saw his student and was able to truly care for him. It was the waiting and the not-knowing that was driving him insane.

Soon, but not soon enough, the ship touched down on the landing pad of the museum. Nujay was supposed to meet them at the closest door. Quickly the two secured the ship and made for the entrance, Milo with his medical bag in tow. True to his word, Nujay was standing at the door, ready to let the Jedi in, a security guard at his side. Knowing that the Jedi Master would want to see his Padawan immediately, Nujay led the way the where the students were staying.

Opening the door to the dark and silent room, Nujay pointed to the far left corner of the room. Qui-Gon walked over as quickly as he could without tripping over any of the sleeping students. When he finally arrived at his Padawan's sleeping mat, the Master's heart broke. Little Obi-Wan was still asleep, but it did not take the Force to see how sick he was. His face was deathly pale, save for two bright red spots on his cheeks, showing an intense fever. His whole body was trembling and even asleep it looked like the boy was burning up and freezing simultaneously. The worse part was the look of pain that crossed his face, that showed how much discomfort the child was really in.

The Master knelt down besides his child, trying to push him into a more restful sleep with the help of the Force. However, he was met with some resistance. The illness that the plagued the child was not allowing the boy's body to relax and the efforts proved unsuccessful.

Looking up, he saw Milo standing over the pair. "Come on, Master Jinn. We will take him back to the ship and examine him there." The Master just nodded. He grabbed his Padawan's backpack and slung it onto his back. The then turned back to the sleeping child and, sleeping mat and all, picked Obi-Wan up and cradled him to his chest. Following Milo and Nujay from the room, the Master felt a slight pull at his pant leg. Looking down he saw Bant Eerin, one of Ob-Wan's best friends, with a very worried look on her face. "Master Jinn. Is Obi-Wan going to be Ok?"

"Yes, Bant. He will be just fine. I will make sure of it. Now go back to sleep." After she fully lay back down, the Master took his Padawan and left the room.

Waiting outside, Nujay, Milo and the other Knights leading the field trip silently addressed the Master. Nujay was the only one who spoke. "I wish your Padawan a speedy recover. Safe journey and may the Force be you both."

Qui-Gon thanked the Knights for looking after his Padawan and set a brisk pace back to the ship, Milo right on his heels.

Once on the ship, Qui-Gon gently laid his apprentice on the sleeping pallet in the small medbay. Grabbing a nearby chair, the Master settled by the head of the bed, so that Milo could have room to work on his Padawan. Qui-Gon took to watching the Padawan's small face and smoothing his ginger hair, while Milo ran a scan of the young boy.

After a few minutes, Milo took a syringe out of his bag. "What are you doing with that," Qui-Gon quietly asked the Healer, still not wanting to wake the slumbering Padawan.

"I have identified that your Padawan has a serious bacterial infection. I need to run a blood test to see which kind so that I can treat him." At Qui-Gon's nod, the healer stuck the fine point of the syringe in the boy's left arm and began to get the blood he needed for the test.

Unfortunately, the needle stick woke the Padawan up. Eyelashes fluttering, Qui-Gon realized that this was the first time he had seen his Padawan's eyes in almost a day. Looking down into the blue-green depths, Qui-Gon spoke in order to reassure his young student. "Hello, Padawan. Everything is OK. I am here and Healer Milo is taking care of you. We will be home soon."

"M…Master."

"Yes, my Obi-Wan. I am here. How are you feeling?"

"Terrible… Ma…"

"All done. I have all the blood that I need from you, Padawan Kenobi. Master Jinn, I am going to run the tests. If you need anything, please let me know." And with that the Healer walked to the other part of the medbay, leaving the Master and Padawan alone.

Qui-Gon adjusted his chair so that he was next to Obi-Wan, rather than behind him. Gently, the Master took Obi-Wan's hand in his own, shocked by clammy it was. However, he was more surprised when Obi-Wan turned away from him. "Obi-Wan? Child, what's wrong?"

The soft-spoken response was not one that Qui-Gon was ready for. "Are..are you..you mad at me?"

The scared little voice broke Qui-Gon's heart, still not understanding why he would be mad at this child of light. "No, no. Of course not, my little one. Why would you think that?"

"Because I didn't tell you that I was sick, because I wanted to go on the trip and I am really sorry, but I wanted to go and…and" Obi-Wan's voice cracked as he gave in to the tears that threatened to fall.

Qui-Gon immediately took the crying child in his arms and started to rock him, murmuring words of comfort and love. Once the tears had abated, Qui-Gon laid his Padawan back on the cot. "Padawan. Do you mean to tell me that you did not tell me whole truth on purpose?"

"Y…yes. Are you mad?"

"No, Padawan. I am not mad. But I think that we will need to talk more about this later. For now, go back to sleep."

"No. I want to talk about it now."

Qui-Gon hesitated. Obi-Wan needed to rest, but one look and he knew that the boy would not be resting until this matter was resolved. "Very well, Padawan. What you did was wrong. You know that you are not supposed to keep anything from me, especially when it is about your health. But I think that you now know what you did wrong and I don't think that you will be doing it again." Obi-Wan shook his head. "And I think that you have already been punished for that…"

"So you're not mad at me."

"No, little one. I already told you that I'm not mad at you. Maybe a little disappointed, but not mad."

"Am I in trouble?"

Qui-Gon paused to think about that. "Well. For right now, no. You are very sick and we need to get you well. However, I think that when you're better you will have an extra essay to write on the reasons why we don't conceal the truth."

"That's it," Obi-Wan said, hardly believing that this was his only punishment.

"Like I said, Padawan, I think that you have already been punished for this. I would imagine that today you were dragged around a museum with all of your loud classmates and you were miserable and didn't have any fun. Today all you wanted was to be in bed at home and instead you got a loud day of learning. Right?" Obi-Wan nodded, looking a little shocked that his Master knew all that. "The reason that Masters punish their Padawans is to show them the consequences of their actions so that they do not do it again. Today you learned hands-on why you do not hide the truth from me, because you had to suffer the consequences. You already learned the lesson and I don't believe that you will be doing this again. The essay will be about your experiences today so that I can be sure that this will not happen again. So there is really no reason to punish you more. Anything else would just be mean. Unless you want to be punished more…" Obi-Wan shook his head, a panicked look on his face. Qui-Gon just chuckled. "I didn't think so." Looking down at his Padawan's sleepy face, Qui-Gon decided that the two had talked enough. "Now; no more talking. Go to sleep, little one. You need the rest. I will be here when you wake up."

"Master. Are you going to take care of me, even though I lied?"

"Little one. I already told you. The only other punishment you will receive for that is the essay, which you will not write until you are better. I think that I understand why you did it and I forgive you. And to answer your question, of course, I am going to take of you. That is my duty and my honor. Now go to sleep."

"But I can't. It hurts."

"What hurts, little one?"

"Everything."

"It's ok. Healer Milo will make it all better. For now I will help you. Close your eyes." Once Obi-Wan was settled, Qui-Gon put a large hand on his Padawan's forehead and sent him the strongest sleep suggestion he could muster. That was, thankfully, enough to put his sick apprentice to sleep.

Qui-Gon sat, holding his apprentice's hand. He was not really surprised that his apprentice withheld the truth. He had been looking forward to that trip for weeks and he came down sick the morning of. Obi-Wan was well on his way to becoming a Jedi, but he was only eight and it was only natural that he have some childlike tendencies. Besides most Padawans concealed the truth at least once early in their apprenticeship, for one reason or another. In a way, it was good that he learned the lesson this way, rather than in a life-threatening situation. The only person who had directly suffered from this was Obi-Wan.

However, Qui-Gon was not at ease. He should have sensed that there was something wrong with his Padawan. Correction, he KNEW that something was wrong with his Padawan, but he did not press this issue. He had believed that Obi-Wan would know what he needed, forgetting that he was still a child. His Padawan was eight years old and sometimes he needed to be watched like an eight-year old, which was something that Qui-Gon had forgotten.

"Master Jinn. May I have a word with you?" The Master stood up, giving his Padawan's hand a gentle squeeze, before moving to the other part of the hold.

"I have identified what is wrong with your Padawan. He has the Kuytrian Flu. It is not the most common flu, but it does get around. The good news is that it is not fatal, although it is quite serious. It generally lasts 3-4 weeks and has a multitude of symptoms, including high fever, headache, body aches, and abdominal pain, coughing fits, extreme chills, congestion, sore throat and sometimes nausea."

There was a pause as Qui-Gon let all of this sink in. "What can we do about it?"

"Well. That is the bad news. This flu is only treatable with one kind of medicine Ouyhgtian. However, Padawan Kenobi is deathly allergic to this drug. I can give him some medicine that will help with the worst of the symptoms, but that is about it. He is just going to have to tough it out these next few weeks. His body will fight it off naturally; it will just take some time. I wish that I could do more."

"What do you want to do about this? Are you going to take him to the Healer's Wing?"

"I don't really see a need. There is really nothing that we can do for him, and I think that he would be more comfortable in your apartment. He is just going to need some close attention and care for the next few weeks, but I believe that you could do that as well as we could. Unless I am wrong about that…"

"No. I will take care of him."

"I thought you might say that. I am going to start him on some medicine now and I will send the rest of it to your apartment when we arrive. All you need to do is give him his medicine and make sure that he gets enough rest and liquids. Solid food might make him throw up, so I would just keep him on a liquid diet for now, but make sure that he stays hydrated. Do your best to keep the fever down using cold compresses. That is pretty much it. If he gets any worse, let us know and I will have a Healer stop by every other day to make sure he is on track to recovery, but that is really all we can do. Any questions?" Qui-Gon shook his head. "Alright. Why don't you go sit with him and I will get his medicine ready."

The Jedi Master walked back to his Padawan's side, brooding over what he just heard. He was thrilled to hear that this was just a temporary illness and that Obi-Wan would be fine. But at the same time, Qui-Gon was very nervous about what was going to happen in the next few weeks. It was going to be a very hard road for his Padawan, and him as well, he suspected. But he vowed to do everything in his power to make his Padawan more comfortable as he fought this illness.


	4. Chapter 4

Well, this is a little later than I planned, but here is the last chapter of "The Truth Will Set You Free." But before we get to that, I would like to thank my reviewers. You are all wonderful!

**Geri K**-Thank you. I felt Qui-Gon had to be nicer to combat with his little Padawan. I hope you enjoy the last part.

**Padawan A. Kenobi**-Yes, where would we be without Obi-angst? But this chapter has the even more important Obi-mush. Yeah!

**KCS**-Yes, allergies are so terrible. And I am glad that you found the boys to be sweet. That was the goal.

**black-n-white-stockings**-Computers are really stupid when they don't work. I hope yours gets better.

And, now, the final part of the story…

**Chapter 4**

Obi-Wan slept through the entire trip, to his Master's joy. Landing on Coruscant, Qui-Gon took Obi-Wan and his belongings off the ship in same manner he brought them on. Milo bid the team a quiet farewell, promising to send some symptom-reducing medication up to the apartment. The Master carried his Padawan through the Temple halls. It was mid-morning now and there were Jedi of all ages walking through the halls on their way to various classes or meetings. Most looked compassionately at the team, it being obvious that the child was ill, but no one stopped the Master.

Palming open the apartment door, Qui-Gon went straight for his bedroom, stopping only long enough to put his apprentice's bag by the couch. The bedroom was still in the slight disarray that he left it in his rush to get to his Padawan. The Master gently put Obi-Wan on his bed, thankful that the child was already in his sleepwear. After pulling away the sleeping mat and covering him with the coverlet, Qui-Gon left the room to get some things that he would need.

The Master moved through the apartment getting some cool water and washcloths and bottles of water and Obi-Wan's favorite energy drink. He was just about to go back to his room, when the door chimed. Knowing who it would be, Qui-Gon opened the door to the medical droid that carried his Padawan's medicine, complete with dosing instructions. Thanking the droid and shutting the door, Qui-Gon took the medicine and the other gathered supplies and went back to check on his sleeping Padawan.

Obi-Wan still felt sick when he woke up. He looked around the dark room that he was now in. To his great joy, he found that he was in his Master's room. He was home! Looking around he found that his Master was not in the room. He tried to sit up, but stopped when a rag fell in front of his eyes. It was cold and Obi-Wan figured that it had been on his forehead to draw the fever down. His musings were interrupted by his Master, who chose that moment to enter his bedroom.

"Good. You're up. How are you feeling, little one?" Obi-Wan just shrugged. "Can you sit all the way up? It is time for your medicine." Obi-Wan obeyed, with a grimace when he tasted the medicine.

"Master? What's wrong with me? I feel horrible and nothing I do makes me feel any better."

"Padawan, you have the Kuytrian Flu. Unfortunately, you are allergic to the only medicine that treats it. The medicine that you just took was to help with your symptoms, but I am afraid that you will just have to wait it out."

"How long?"

"About three to four weeks."

"Three to four weeks?!" Obi-Wan cried, immediately sending him into a nasty coughing fit. Qui-Gon moved closer, rubbing the boy's back as his Padawan struggled to breathe over the coughs. Once the fit had finished, Qui-Gon handed his apprentice a bottle of power drink. Obi-Wan drank some of it, even though it hurt to swallow. The coolness against his throat made it feel better, despite the flashes of pain.

Are you alright now, Obi?" At his Padawan's nod, the Master continued to tell his Padawan about his condition. "I know that it seems like a long time, Padawan, but you will be alright. I am going to be here with you the whole time and you will be fine. Ok?" The Padawan just nodded. "Good. Now why don't you try to get some more rest."

"How long have I been asleep?"

"Well, you slept most of the trip home so that was five hours and we got back about four hours ago, so about nine hours. Why?"

"Haven't I slept enough?"

"Not if you are still tired, which I know you are, little one. You are sick; there is no shame in it."

"But I don't want to go to sleep." Obi-Wan knew that he was tired. He almost wanted to go back to sleep. He was achy and everything hurt and the only time he wasn't in some amount of pain was when he was asleep. But he couldn't. His Master was with him. Almost the entire time he was at the museum all he had wanted was his Master to take care of him. Now here he was. Obi-Wan was not willing to give that up by going to sleep.

"Why don't you want to go to sleep, Padawan" Qui-Gon asked, his voice hinting at exasperation.

"Because. Then I'll be alone and I don't want to be alone."

"Oh, my little one. You are never alone. I will be here with you. I am going to stay with you until you get over this. You know that I would never leave you."

"Yes, but…" Obi-Wan tapered off, not wanting to show how much he wanted his Master near. He was a Jedi Padawan and he needed to act brave. He usually was, but ever since he had gotten sick, his brave streak seemed to have left him. But how could he admit that to his courageous Master?

He should not have worried. Qui-Gon seemed to understand his reluctance. "Ok. You don't have to go right to sleep. But you do need to stay in bed. How about a story?" Obi-Wan nodded his approval, truly wanting to hear a good story.

His Master left the room long enough to get a datapad with a suitable story downloaded on it. Walking back in the room, Obi-Wan was sitting up in bed, ready for his story. But before he got it, his Master handed him his energy drink. The Padawan got the hint and started to drink from the bottle as his Master climbed onto the other side of the bed. Snuggling up against his Master, Obi-Wan took another sip of his drink, ready to hear a tale of princes and princesses, magical spells and faraway lands, good triumphing over evil…

Qui-Gon looked down and smiled. His Padawan did not even half of the story before he fell asleep. The medicine was starting to take the edge off of the worse of the aches, so Obi-Wan was able to easily get the rest that he so desperately needed. With his Padawan being allergic to the only medicine that could get rid of the flu quickly, sleep was the best treatment for him. Dimming the lights with the Force, Qui-Gon rewet the cloth and placed it back on Obi-Wan's forehead, settling in to wait.

Five hours later, the Master was meditating when he felt his Padawan was waking up. Qui-Gon had made sure to keep part of his awareness on the slumbering Padawan at his side. Immediately coming out of meditation, Qui-Gon looked down to see his Padawan coming around. The Padawan soon fell into another coughing fit that left him gasping for air. The Master was there, rubbing his back and trying to comfort him. When the fit had finished, Obi-Wan drew the covers around him, suffering another bout of chills. Qui-Gon handed him his drink, which the Padawan refused to take.

"Come on, little one. You need to drink."

"No. It hurts my throat and I'm not thirsty."

"I know, but you need to stay hydrated, now drink up." Pushing the liquid at Obi-Wan's throat, the young Jedi took a few sips of the liquid, knowing that he did not have a choice. Once he had enough to suit his Master, Obi-Wan huddled back under the covers, taking the cool rag off his forehead as he went. Qui-Gon knew that his Padawan was cold, but he took the rag and put it back in the cool water before putting it back on his Padawan's forehead. Obi-Wan immediately tried to take it off, but Qui-Gon gently caught his wrist. "No, Padawan. I know that it is cold, but you have to leave that on. You fever needs to come down. Last time I checked it was 101.9 degrees. But how about I make you some soup. That might make you feel better." At Obi-Wan's nod, Qui-Gon got up to make the soup, instructing Obi-Wan to not remove the cloth in his absence.

Qui-Gon quickly fixed the ponick soup for his young apprentice. Walking back into the room, he was pleased to see that his Padawan had not removed the cool cloth, even though he was obviously cold. Setting the bowl on the nightstand, he helped his Padawan into a sitting position, before handing him the hot soup. Obi-Wan seemed content eating his dinner and Qui-Gon was very glad that he was eating some of it. Unable to finish the soup, Qui-Gon set it aside and continued to read to the sick child, holding the boy in his arms, waiting for him to go back to sleep.

The next week passed rather slowly for the Master. Obi-Wan was very tired and slept for the vast majority of the day. He was forced awake every six hours to take his medicine. During this time the young Padawan also had liquids of various forms pushed down his throat. Qui-Gon tried to keep busy while his Padawan rested. He meditated, read a few novels, made sure he was up-to-date on all Temple happenings and, most importantly, he watched over his apprentice.

Healer Milo stopped by every other day to check on Obi-Wan, who usually slept through the examination. Milo believed that the Padawan was recovering just fine. His body was fighting very hard and that was why he was so tired. The Healer also believed that he would have more energy soon, even though he would still need a lot of rest.

Sure enough about a week and a half into the terrible illness Obi-Wan only felt the need to sleep 16 hours a day; an improvement over the 23 hours he wanted to sleep a week prior. This prompted more activity between the Master and his Padawan. They played numerous sabacc games, watched holovids and read stories. Both seemed very content to enjoy each other's company.

Obi-Wan also seemed much stronger than he had been. He still tired very easily and was prompt to severe headaches whenever he stood up for long periods of time, but recovery was in sight. Everyday, the boy got a little stronger and the symptoms got a little less noticeable.

Three weeks and two days in to this illness, Milo took his young patient off of the medicine, controlling his symptoms. He would need another couple days of rest before he went back to classes, but he was mostly recovered.

Sure enough two days later, Obi-Wan bounded off to his classes, his Master very happy that he was better. It had not been easy seeing his Padawan suffering, too weak to get out of bed. But they had gotten through it and that was what mattered.

Obi-Wan was very excited to go to class. Well, not so excited to actually go to class, but rather he was excited to see his friends. He never got a chance to say good-bye at the museum and because he had been sick, he had not seen them since. Walking into his first class, he immediately scanned the group for his three friends. He spotted them easy enough and very quickly walked over.

"Obi!!"

Before the Padawan could reply he was instantly covered in his friends. "Obi-Wan! You're all better," Bant cried. "Yeah, you look really good, Obi-Wan," Reeft said. "What was wrong with you," Garen asked.

"Ok, guys, calm down. I'm not going anywhere. Yes I am here and all better. And I had the Kuytrian Flu, but I am fine now."

"We were so worried about you," Bant said in a gentler tone, as she wrapped her arms around Obi-Wan's neck.

"I know. I'm sorry. Listen. I have to thank the three of you. I don't know how much longer I could have held out and you were right to tall Knight Nujay. It is amazing how much better you feel when you are actually sleeping in a bed and not on a floor."

"No problem, pal. You would have done the same for us," Garen replied. "And was your Master mad at you?"

"No. He said that he was disappointed in me, but that he understood. He also said that he thinks that I learned why Padawans don't withhold the truth from their Master, which I have. So I have to write a report on my experiences at the museum and how miserable I was, so that he knows that I learned my lesson."

"That's not so bad."

"No. And I think that I do deserve to be punished some." The conversation was interrupted by the bell that signaled the start of class. The four friends rushed to their seats, ready to take on a new day.

**Epilogue**

"Here you are, Master."

"Ah, yes. Your punishment essay. And how long is it?"

"Eight double-spaced durasheets, Master."

"Eight?!" But Padawan I only required you to do three."

"I know, but it wasn't enough to say what I wanted to. Is that Ok?"

"Yes, Padawan, it is fine. And this will give me something to do on the transport."

"Transport? Master, are you going somewhere?"

"Actually, young one, WE are going somewhere."

"Where?" Qui-Gon just handed his Padawan an envelope. Obi-Wan opened it and pulled out two tickets. For the Science Museum on Puthgfy!! The Padawan immediately gave his Master the biggest hug possible. He was going to see the museum and everything that he missed! Including the technology exhibit!

"Happy, Padawan?"

"Yes, Master. This is the best thing ever! We can go back and I can see the technology exhibit and when are we leaving?"

"Before dawn tomorrow, so you better get some sleep."

"But, Master I'm not tired," came the whiny reply.

"Too bad. You need to sleep. Now go get changed into you sleep clothes." Obi-Wan just put on a pout and stomped into his bedroom. Qui-Gon just sighed. He wanted his Padawan to see the museum and he knew that it had made his Padawan happy. Tomorrow was going to be a good day and it would be even better because it would be just the two of them. But, by the Force, it was going to be a long night! It would be just like four weeks ago when his Padawan went to the museum the first time. Why didn't he give him those tickets tomorrow? Oh, well. The look on his face had been worth it.

The End

Thank you so much to all of my readers and reviewers! I hope you enjoyed it.


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